Project by

About this project

THE PROJECT

REX NOCTURNUS is a one-shot 5.5" x 8.5" comic book by writer Liam Boyle and artist Scott K. Monteiro. Rex Nocturnus is the story of Charly: an antagonistic, seafaring girl and her dogged attempts to destroy the giant shark, Rex Nocturnus, that ruined her life.

THE STORY

Aboard an aging vessel, the Ocatavia, helmed by Captain Grayson and a small, tight-knit crew, Charly lives the only life she can remember: the Hunt. For at a young age our heroine lost her father and half her left arm in a vicious shark attack. Haunted by the loss of the peaceful life she once knew, she replaced her missing hand with a harpoon gun and has been trying to kill the beast ever since. But this is no ordinary shark, this is Rex Nocturnus. "The King" is a legend in this part of the world, feared by all who've so much as dipped a toe in the drink. Thought of as a god, the great black shark is whispered to have been roaming the seas for eons. Rex Nocturnus has long been deemed un-killable, a rumor led a large amount of credibility by the scores of broken, rusted harpoons sticking out of it's back. But you just can't tell some girls “no”. . .

CHARLY

Charly Promo

Charly Model Sheet

REX NOCTURNUS

Rex Nocturnus Model Sheet

CAPTAIN GRAYSON

Captain Grayson Model Sheet

THE HELP

YOU! We have set this to be a pre-order with benefits. Really all we want is to make comic books, so if you like the story above and the art we've shown, make a pledge. In an ideal world we could just sell the comic, but until we get that ball rolling we have added a few perks for those of you feeling particularly generous.

THE REWARDS

We've listed them over to the side. EVERYONE who pledges receives Rex Nocturnus. I mean all we really want to do is make kick ass comic books, so our number one priority is getting that into your hands! Going up from there, you can get anything from t-shirts to prints to stuff from Liam's band, The Old Edison (including an exclusive theme recorded specifically for the comic). We even threw a bro-tatt up there for anyone brave enough. Everything you get will be related to the comic (except the custom commission - unless you want!) so you'll get shark stuff mostly, and who doesn't love shark stuff?

Hey Ladies and Gentlemen!
Because we're doing so extremely well (75% of our goal in only THREE days!) we're going to add some stretch goals!

$1100 MET!- We'll get some old school trading cards printed for each main character in the book. You know the kind with the stats on the back? Fuck yeah! These will be given to EVERYONE who has backed the project! We've jumped past the first stretch goal, $1100! So everyone who has backed us so far (and anyone who does so before the KS ends) is getting a set of six (I think) trading cards! Better hit Amazon or Ebay for those plastic card sleeves!
*

$1400 MET!- We'll make and print a supplemental 5 to 10 page comic (we haven't written this yet, so we don't know the length yet) that ties directly into the events of the main Rex Nocturnus comic. This will be given to EVERYONE who has backed the project. As I researched this next stretch goal project Liam and I came up with a great idea. In addition to the extra comic we're going to get some friends and guest artists to draw some pin-ups to put in this supplement as well. We're both SUPER excited about this and we're attempting to get a wide variety of artists with different art backgrounds to bring in some really creative interpretations of our characters. I'm also pushing Liam to do one himself!*

$1700 MET!- We'll upgrade our printing for REX NOCTURNUS and splurge on a screen-printed cover! Every single cover will be screened by the awesome printers at P&L Printing. Trust us these covers look AMAZING compared to regular printing! This will OBVIOUSLY be given to everyone who has backed the project.**

$2500- Payment split equally between the artists helping us out by doing pin-ups for the Rex Nocturnus Supplement. It's a tiny thank you and not at all what their talents are worth.

$200,000 - We'll make a Rex Nocturnus movie and try to get Mary Elizabeth Winstead (of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, Deathproof, and The Thing fame) to star as Charly (if you're reading this Mary Elizabeth PLEASE! You'd be perfect!)! And maybe we'll be able to rent the Bruce, the old mechanical shark, to play Rex Nocturnus!***

* These rewards will be shipped AFTER the initial rewards have already been shipped out to you. Making comics takes time!

** This may slow down the printing time, but probably not by too much as we've already gotten a time frame for each printed version of our comic.

***This stretch goal probably will never happen. But it's all in your hands, Mary Elizabeth. It's all in your hands . . .

In addition we'd just like to say thank you all for your incredible generosity! We couldn't do this without you and we are eternally grateful that you've backed our project. We love you all.

T-SHIRT DESIGN

T-Shirt Design

Please note that only the LINE WORK from this design will be printed on the shirt. I think it'd look weird to have a rectangle of tan on a t-shirt!

Risks and challenges

The only real risks involved in this project are production delays. The art is under way and by all estimates should be completed by the end of February. After this we send the book to our printer (P&L Printing the same place that has printed Becky Cloonan's amazing mini-comics "Wolves" and "The Mire"), where, depending on their printing schedule, we may also run into delays. As soon as we have the comics and other materials in hand they will be sent to our backers. We're aiming to have the book printed and in our hands by early April so that we can debut Rex Nocturnus at the Boston Comic Con.

FAQ

Call us traditionalists, but we really wanted a comic you had to experience. We want to feel the texture of the paper in our hands and smell the ink. We want the corners to get soft and rounded from stuffing it in your bag when you're on the train or from lending it to your friend who stuffs it into HIS bag (Liam). And that doesn't mean we're against digital and web comics. We appreciate what the digital medium has done to help comics evolve and stay relevant, but that just isn't THIS project. Although, hell, who knows! Maybe if we get to the point where we've run out of physical copies we'll make it available digitally for those who really want it and can't track down a copy of the physical version.

Our main goal in making Rex Nocturnus is to make a high quality comic and get it into as many hands as possible. For $5 we've managed to find a great printer that does amazing work. If the comic cost any more less people would be able or willing to get it. We just want to introduce ourselves, our characters, and our stories to the comic book reading (and publishing) world. Making money was never and will never be our goal.

Yes! For prizes that include anything more than the comic ($20 pledges and up) please add $10 for shipping. The higher rewards $250 and $500 are specific to the US only (mostly just New England actually).

Pledge $250 or more

2 backers
Limited (3 left of 5)

The above rewards plus the Old Edison will play a show wherever you want (backyards, basements, boats...) whenever you want (schedule allowing) and Scott will make art live that you get to keep (must be on a weekend).

Estimated delivery:Jun 2013

Only ships to: United States

You selected

Pledge $300 or more

0 backers
Limited (5 left of 5)

All of the above rewards (excluding the $250 reward) plus an original page of artwork from Rex Nocturnus. Once the comic is fully drawn you'll be able to choose from selected pages and keep the one you've selected!

Estimated delivery:May 2013

Ships anywhere in the world

You selected

Pledge $500 or more

0 backers
Limited (1 left of 1)

The above rewards plus Bro-tatts! To celebrate the publishing of our first comic we'll be getting the "Sharkfighter" tattoo design from the comic as a real tattoo. You'll be invited to come along and get the tattoo with us and forever be immortalized in Rex Nocturnus history! You pay for your tattoo and we'll pay for ours.

Estimated delivery:Jun 2013

Only ships to: United States

Funding period

Feb 8, 2013 - Mar 6, 2013
(25 days)

Eureka! You've found our little secret.

Sign up for our Happening email for all the inside info about arts and culture in the Kickstarter universe and beyond.